Domino Effect
by LaurielS
Summary: Domino effect: the cumulative effect when one event initiates a chain of related events. When a mission involving the triumvirate starts to go wrong, a chain of events is initiated, and the aftermath is something no one would have ever expected. Major Character Death.
1. Chapter 1

**Domino Effect**

Disclaimer: Don't own anything!

 **Chapter 1**

"Another supposedly uninhabited plane according to sensors. And look where we are: stuck in a cave after being chased by natives. So much for technology," grumbled McCoy.

Spock, Kirk and McCoy have been in a tiny cave for over two hours, ever since the local inhabitants (with six appendages and can apparently run VERY fast) decided to chase them as they looked like food. McCoy couldn't really blame them: at ten feet in height, twice their girth and with six legs, anything on this planet probably looked like food to them. He was instead surprised at how long they took to find them: they had been around the beam out point for about an hour and it was not until their attention turned to investigate what looked like man-made walls that the ground started shaking and the creatures burst out from underground.

Of course, the fact that there's one species on this planet who thinks they look like food suggests that there are probably much more out there with the same mindset which they haven't met.

McCoy shuddered inwardly.

"Bones, you can't expect readings to be accurate every time. There's a reason why we explore every planet we go."

"Fat load of good that has ever done us. Anyway, must it always be us? Have you realised that if we die the ship will not have its Captain, First Officer and CMO, all in a span of a few minutes?"

Jim smiled and pat McCoy on his shoulder (elbowing Spock in the process partly to hurry him up), earning an eye roll from the latter.

"That's why I bring you along. Spock, are they still near us?"

"Negative, Captain," came the reply as said Vulcan tinkered with his tricorder, "It appears we are safe for now. However, it would be necessary to reach our beam out point in two hours, fifteen minutes as I detect an incoming weather anomaly which can cause the ship to lose our signal completely."

Two hours didn't seem like enough time to work out a plan to distract the creatures and beam up successfully.

"Does that mean we'd be trapped here permanently if we miss that time?"

"The natural dampening field on this planet lifts every 23 hours, for 1 hour each time. If we miss this timing, the next time we can beam out would be 25 hours, nineteen minutes. We will also need to recalibrate our coordinates with the ship as magnetic interference on this planet may change how the transporters detect coordinates here."

"Twenty five hours on this planet with hostile creatures chasing us? I don't like the odds."

"Doctor, the odds are—"

McCoy groaned, running his hands down his face, "Cut it Spock, I don't want to know."

"Right, we need a plan,"as usual, Jim came out to wrap things up, "two hours is all we have."

"But Jim, the beam out point is right in front of their base camp. What makes you think that we can reach there AND not be eaten alive?"

Jim picked up a stick and started drawing a vague representation of their beam out point.

"No choice, Bones. We have to get out of here."

-To be continued-

Reviews and comments are welcomed!


	2. Chapter 2

**Domino Effect**

Author's Note: one more update today! :D Many thanks to Kaedn and elecktrum for being a constant reviewer of my stories! And to another's guest reviewer for reviewing my previous chapter :)

To elecktrum: Things are about to get much worse...

Disclaimer: Don't own anything!

 **Chapter 2**

"First of all, we need a plan to distract them. Spock, any hypothesis on how they found us?"

"As they tunnel underground, it would be a valid hypothesis that they detect movement either by feeling vibrations on the ground or by hearing our footsteps."

"Right so to distract them, we would need something that hits the ground and catches their attention."

"What, like throwing a damn pebble?" supplied McCoy helpfully.

"That might work, Bones."

"Jim, we're not in a spy movie from the twenty first century!" McCoy huffed, and Jim tried to hide a smile as he saw Bones throw his hands up in the air in desperation, only to accidentally hit an increasingly unamused Spock.

Jim wondered if he should tell Bones one day that his sarcasm is why Kirk wants him on almost every away mission they have to go.

"Well Spock, any ideas apart from throwing rocks?"

"Captain, it would seem our only choice is to get to the beam out point as soon as possible. I will monitor their movements using the tricorder and we would have to stop once I detect any movements."

"In plain English, Spock, you're telling us to make a run for it?"

"That is what I said, Doctor."

"Well, let's go!" exclaimed Kirk.

"What the hell Jim, how is this a plan?!" shouted McCoy. Unfortunately, his protests fell on deaf ears as Jim started packing his things up, wiped away the schematic and prepared to leave. Spock, on the other hand, was adjusting his tricorder and pointing it in different directions.

"Better than throwing stones eh, Bones?"

McCoy rolled his eyes and followed after Kirk and Spock, his hand tightening around the medikit.

* * *

On and on they ran, past several hilly terrains and grasslands full of strange, tall, multicoloured grass. It would honestly have made quite a picturesque view, especially with the glittering, glass-like clouds that seemed to be settling in, if not for the fact that some overgrown insect might just appear from the ground and eat them up. It was then that McCoy was brought back to the time when him and Jim were running for their lives in Nirobi: they were once again running through some strange terrain because some alien creatures were chasing them.

 _And Jim wonders why I hate away missions._

"Jim, stop!" shouted Spock suddenly.

Jim and Leonard didn't need to be told twice, especially since the ground was now literally shaking under their feet. They stood there for about two minutes, not daring to even blink, before the trembling lessened and whatever it was seemed to have tunneled away. Once the tricorder stopped beeping, Kirk and McCoy breathed a sigh of relief.

"Captain, there is a cave approximately 500 meters away from here."

"Good job, Spock. How much time do we have left?"

"One hour before our rendezvous with the ship."

Kirk nodded and entered the cave, with Spock and McCoy following quickly. The 'cave' was even smaller than before such that Spock had to bend slightly so that his head did not hit the ceiling. The air felt stale once all three were in the cave, and a strange, sweet smell reminiscent of spoilt fruit filled the cave.

"I guess I'll take suffocation over being eaten alive," McCoy grumbled under his breath as he settled in.

"Doctor, there is enough air in here to last us for approximately 3 hours, 11 minutes. We will not suffocate."

"Just an expression, Mr Spock," sighed McCoy.

"How far away are we from the beam out point?" asked Kirk before Spock could give any reply.

"I expect another thirty minutes at most, Captain."

Kirk whipped out his communicator and fiddled with the buttons.

"Mr Scott? Come in, Mr Scott."

The communicator gave no reply.

Kirk tried to change frequencies and modify the communicator, before receiving some static.

"Mr Scott?" Kirk tried again, fine tuning the buttons even more.

"S-S-S-ir? C-pt-n?"

"Mr Scott!"

Communications sizzled on the other end, before something came up again.

"Captain Kirk?" came a distinctively Scottish accent.

"Mr Scott, can you hear us?"

"Aye Captain. Are ye at the beam out point?"

"Negative, Mr Scott. Can you get a lock on where we are now?"

A pause; hopes were raised as they heard Scotty manipulating the machine.

"Negative, Captain. Are ye under some cover?"

"Yes, we are in a cave."

"Might be the minerals messin' up the transporter. Move into the open, Captain, an' we'll try again."

Kirk nodded, motioning the others to follow.

"Mr Scott, do you detect us?"

"Negative, Captain."

Kirk gave Spock and McCoy a resigned look.

"Alright, keep this channel open. See you at the beam out point later."

"Aye, Captain."

* * *

By the time they reached the beam out point, they saw that things had reverted back to the calm state they had earlier been in before they went near the wall. Kirk motioned Spock and McCoy to a nearby overgrowth, where they started to monitor the conditions of the beam out location.

Nothing.

"What d'you suppose those wall-like things are, Jim?" whispered McCoy.

"No idea. Maybe it's the home of those creatures? Marks their boundaries or something."

"So if we don't step near that area we should be alright?"

"I think so. I'll go first."

"No, we go together," said McCoy defiantly. Kirk turned to stop him, but upon seeing the resolve in both Spock's and McCoy's eyes, he knew whatever he said would be disregarded.

Slowly, the three of them made their way into the middle of the open, careful to avoid anything that looked like traps. Once they reached their agreed positions, Kirk took out his communicator and signalled to the ship.

"Mr Scott, can you beam us up now?"

"I cannae promise anything, Captain. There seems to be some magnetic material that's making us lose our hold. Give me a moment-"

Suddenly, the other side of the wall came alive, and this time, instead of the multi-legged creatures they had encountered earlier, small, red humanoids started appearing at the top of the wall. They look highly alarmed, and it seemed like they took them to be invaders threatening to harm them. At this, Kirk lifted up his hands as a sign of peace, but the natives seemed to take that as an offensive gesture as they started screeching and lifting their weapons to aim at them.

"Mr Scott... now will be a good time!"

"Captain, I- I cannae!"

Suddenly, the whole army stood still. Kirk took this opportunity to step forward and lay down his pistol as a sign of friendship. Despite this, the weapons remained trained at them, and Kirk could see that the arrows in particular were ready to fire. Just as Kirk was about to explain himself, the ground started trembling and hissing sounds could be heard.

 _Shit_.

Before he could react, the leader of the lot blew a sharp whistle and set into motion a trebuchet carrying what appeared to be a spherical object at them. At the same time, an appendage could be seen coming out from the ground, clawing at anything nearby. Jim dodged it narrowly, swiping his pistol from the ground in the process and fired at the appendage. The appendage withdrew, but Kirk's eye caught sight of the spherical object heading straight at them. As it landed, Jim took one look at the object and knew what it was immediately.

"It's a grenade! Everyone, down!"

-To be continued-

Reviews and comments are welcomed!


	3. Chapter 3

**Domino Effect**

A/N: Big thank you to those who've reviewed, followed and liked my story so far!

Disclaimer: Not mine.

 **Chapter 3**

"Down, all of you, down!"

Before McCoy had time to react, the grenade that landed where Kirk had been standing just a few seconds earlier exploded. While its power was much weaker than the firearms available on Earth, it was still a force to be reckoned with as the blast made even Spock dazed for a few seconds. Kirk, on the other hand, had thrown himself protectively over McCoy and Spock, bearing the brunt of the explosion. The ground where the grenade hit was now a crater, and the hissing sound they had heard earlier stopped.

Silence.

"Shit, Jim!" cursed McCoy as he scrambled out from beneath Kirk, red aliens forgotten. "Of all the heroic, idiotic things you can do!" Carefully, he laid Jim down and started assessing him as Spock stood over them protectively. As his hands reached for the back of Jim's head, he felt a sticky liquid running down his hand.

Blood.

"Mr Scott," Spock barked towards the communicator, phaser trained towards the red humanoids, "beam us up, now!"

To McCoy's dismay, the communicator suddenly fizzled on the other end and went out. Quickly, Spock tinkered with the buttons of the communicator as McCoy watched the aliens, but try as he might, the communicator only received static at the other end.

Taking advantage of the calm, Spock gave a very un-Vulcan hmph and took Kirk's communicator, transferring some parts to his own.

Whatever gods in that region must have listened to them, for the communicator cackled back to life momentarily.

"Ah'm tryin' Mr Spock! There's an energy surge that we cannae overcome!"

The clouds were inching closer towards them. The red pool beneath Kirk's head was increasing ever so slightly, although the blood flow had reduced to a trickle thanks to McCoy's ministrations.

The communicator fizzled again.

"Jim, speak to me!" commanded McCoy, as he finished sterilising the wound using the medical tricorder and applying gauze to stop the bleeding. Without more advanced medical equipment, he couldn't conclude exactly how severe Kirk's injury is, but he knew he had to make Jim wake up if Kirk wanted to live through this.

Thankfully, Jim stirred.

"Bones…?" he mumbled weakly, squinting against the light, "where are we?"

Bloody concussion.

"A stupid planet don't you remember?"

"Sleepy, Bones."

"Don't you dare fall asleep, James Tiberius Kirk! I've worked so hard to keep you alive—you're not allowed to die on this godforsaken planet!"

"We're on a planet? What happened?" mumbled Jim as he slowly lost consciousness again.

A loud warlike cry issued from the wall, catching both Spock's and McCoy's attention. With an answering cry, the archers at the wall let lose their arrows, with some resembling flaming comets whilst others were blunt and coated with a layer of brown oil. Luckily for them, the first round of arrows did not fly far, but Spock could see that they were getting ready more powerful mechanised bows. Quickly, Spock led McCoy up and together, both of them carried Kirk into the small outgrowth they had previously hidden in. Halfway, he heard McCoy curse under his breath and saw that an arrow had found its mark, grazing McCoy's shoulder. Spock picked up the arrow immediately, making sure not to lose his hold on Jim's head while doing so.

"Doctor, quickly!"

Before they reached the grass patch, long appendages began appearing from underground again, much to McCoy's horror. As both of their hands were full, the only thing they could do was run into the overgrowth, where the grass may provide some sort of camouflage. The last thing McCoy saw before the grass eclipsed his view was a gigantic body coming out of the ground.

 _Bloody giant insects._

Together, both of them ran as quickly as they could through the grass, dodging bits of root here and there. McCoy was sure the creatures were following them- he could hear the stomps of their appendages coming nearer and the hissing sounds were getting louder. All he could hope for was that the long grass would shelter them from the primitive sight of the creatures and slow the creatures down. Suddenly, Spock stopped behind a huge tree, motioning McCoy to do the same

 _They identify their prey by feeling vibrations on the ground._

As the grass behind them shook, McCoy forced down his urge to run, focusing instead on Kirk's injury to draw his attention away from the creatures. He could see the grass shaking more and more violently and he swore he could see what appeared to be an arm reaching for them...

Just as McCoy was sure the creatures had found them, the grass suddenly stopped moving, and footsteps could be heard scrambling away from them.

McCoy breathed a sigh of relief.

 _And then there's Jim..._

"Put him down," he barked as he took out his tricorder, positioning it over Kirk's head. "Can't detect much about the head beyond the obvious concussion," muttered McCoy, "maybe a fractured skull... third degree burns across the back, multiple lacerations, possible spinal injury... shards piercing into the lungs… shit we need to get him outta here."

"The transporter is still not safe, Doctor."

"Well find some way to get Scotty to change coordinates to where we are now! Proximity beam out if we have to. Jim has no more time, and I don't care if we beam up this entire bloody grassland with us!"

Spock took out the communicator again. "Mr Scott, how are the transporters?"

"At least another half an hour, sir, we need to check that the beaming is safe. Won't risk splicing, yer know."

Spock stole a glance at the unconscious Kirk.

His commanding officer. His captain. His friend.

 _Jim_.

His hold on the communicator tightened.

"Please proceed, Mr Scott. I will try to amplify our communicator signals in the meantime. Spock out."

"Spock…?" Jim called weakly.

"Captain."

"When I'm gone..."

"Shut up Jim, you're not gonna die if I can help it," said McCoy gruffly as he prepared a hypo.

But Spock did not miss the slight trembling in McCoy's hands.

Jim shook his head as blood started trickling down his lips. "No time... listen... Spock... be a good captain, i know you can..."

"Captain..."

"If you need guidance from the more human side of things... McCoy's the guy. No matter how illogical he may seem. Both of you... great -"

But Jim never got the chance to finish his sentence as he suddenly started gasping for air. McCoy cursed and drew a tube and pocket knife from his medikit before sterilizing them using his medical tricorder.

"Spock, this is going to hurt a lot. I need you to nerve pinch him."

Without a word, Spock reached for the points on Kirk's shoulder and applied pressure, rendering him unconscious. Once done, McCoy's determined eyes met Spock's for a second, but it was all Spock needed to know what he was going to do. He desperately wanted to stop McCoy, but logic told him this was the best for Jim. As he saw McCoy aim the knife at Jim's chest, he realised that his only comfort was that at least they had a physician with them.

To be forced to hurt a good friend... he did not envy Leonard's position at all.

"Sorry, Jim. Have to keep you alive."

With that, McCoy took a deep breath and plunged the knife into Kirk's chest. Despite the nerve pinch, the pain threw Jim back into reality for a moment and he screamed, chilling both Spock and McCoy. McCoy forced himself to breathe deeply and concentrate as he struggled to see in the shadow of the tree to insert the chest drain. Blood was still flowing freely as McCoy fumbled through his medikit for a bandage with hands that were wet with Jim's blood.

"Where is the f-"

"... 'S in here somewhere..."

"...not the gauze..."

In the end, it was Spock who found the bandage pack amidst McCoy's grumbles- it had been sitting beside McCoy all along and he never noticed it. McCoy sighed and reached for the bandage, but as his hands brushed past Spock's arm, a whirlpool of emotions hit him, stunning him for a moment.

"Sorry Doctor, I-"

"It's alright, Spock," said McCoy softly.

After McCoy's quick bandage, both of them sat on the ground, watching Jim as his breathing evened out. The scenery was deceptively calm now with the grass swaying in the wind, but everything that had happened made him wish to never come back here again.

The communicator chirped back to life, the sweetest sound Leonard had heard in a long while.

"Ready for beaming, Mr Spock. Medical on standby."

He wished Medical did not have to be on standby every damn time.

"Acknowledged. Energise."

 _Now to save Jim's life._

 **-To be continued-**

Reviews and comments are welcomed!

P. S. I'm also looking for a beta reader!


	4. Chapter 4

**Domino Effect**

A/N: Thanks to those who reviewed/ added my stories to favorites! Reviews are much love and keep me writing :) I'm happy to get any comments that can help me improve!

Disclaimer: Don't own anything!

 **Chapter 4**

Once they materialized on the transporter, the medical team was already on standby with a portable gurney. Chapel quickly took McCoy's side, helping Jim onto the platform whilst Spock stabilised Jim's head. The biobed's alarm came into life, before it was swiped shut by McCoy.

"OT. Now," came McCoy's crisp response, the professional mask slipping in place. Chapel nodded to Scotty, who activated the announcement system and informed all decks to be cleared for transfer to MedBay. As soon as the transporter room doors opened, Jim was rushed out at top speed to the operation theatre.

As the team reached the theatre, McCoy noticed that M'Benga and the beta shift nurses were already there, all scrubbed up and ready to go. With a practiced hand, McCoy positioned Kirk under the sterillite and pulled several machines near to the bed.

"What happened?"

"Grenade explosion. Look for head, spinal, lung injury. Third degree burns down the back. Start first. Update me later," said McCoy, as he gave a hypo to stabilise Kirk's condition. Quickly, he turned to exit the operation theatre to scrub up, but just before the automatic doors closed behind him, he looked at Kirk's unconscious form for one more time.

 _Keep him alive._

* * *

When McCoy next entered the Operation Theatre, he saw that Jim's head wound had been tended to by M'Benga. The neural repair device (NRD) was finishing up its last few rounds, and it wasn't long before the device beeped to signify its finish.

"How are the injuries?"

"Extensive, but can be repaired. The minor skull fracture and epidural haematoma has been treated by the NRD. Some contusions at the lumbar spinal area but probably not serious. We are now sealing the lungs first before tending to the superficious wounds. Meanwhile, Nurse Evan has informed Medical Lab 1 to look for compatible skin grafts for the burns."

McCoy nodded and took his place opposite M'Benga.

"Would you like to take over?"

"You do it, M'Benga. Not in top condition now."

The other doctor eyed McCoy suspiciously and hesitated. At McCoy's insistent gaze, he nodded and answered, "Aye sir. We will now start to seal the lungs."

Unfortunately, what started as a simple procedure turned out to be much more complex. Halfway through the procedure, the biobed alarm sounded and M'Benga suddenly noticed blood filling the lungs, effectively choking Kirk again. McCoy waved for M'Benga to continue with the lungs whilst he inspected the surrounding organs. As McCoy's hands reached for the abdomen, the unnaturally stiffness caught his attention and he called for a handheld scanner. A quick inspection revealed that there was also bleeding into the abdominal cavity due to grenade shards, which did not show up on the biobed as its material interfered with its detection. McCoy swore and reached for another scalpel.

"Abdominal bleeding?"

"Yeah some organic material pierced right through. Run another bag of blood, Chris."

"Blood in preparation, Leonard."

"You better not go into hypovolemic shock, Jim," muttered McCoy to himself as he made the first cut.

True to McCoy's word, Kirk did not go into hypovolemic shock- however, he did have a sudden episode of ventricular fibrillation which required McCoy and a defibrillator coaxing the heart twice before it could beat normally again, as well as a sudden allergic reaction to a drug he was previously not allergic to ( _what_ _the_ _hell_ , _Jim_ ), all of which threw the OT into a state of medical emergency a total of three times. Patching up the burnt skin also took substantial time as they had to slowly separate cloth from skin at the outside of the wound, sterilise everything, before putting the layer of prepared skin back on. Needless to say, by the time M'Benga and McCoy was done, the entire team was utterly physically and emotionally exhausted.

M'Benga secretly thought to himself that if anyone needed an emotional roller coaster, _Enterprise's_ MedBay can provide all the experience a person would need for an entire lifetime.,

As McCoy finished the last stitch, the medical team stood in silence and monitored Kirk for ten minutes because _hell,_ this was the captain and _anything_ could just suddenly happen. Finally, as the OT clock chimed to indicate the end of gen minutes, McCoy waved to the standby nurses tiredly.

"Yeah okay push him to the ICU for observation."

At this, M'Benga let out a breath he didn't realize he had been holding and started the last round of examination with McCoy as the nurses prepared the transfer to ICU.

* * *

Ever since Spock came back to the Bridge instead of the captain, Uhura had kept a close eye on Spock. The crew now knew better than to ask Spock what happened- Spock would not have said anything, and if the Captain was in a bad shape, it was likely that the crew needed to be in top condition to deal with whatever would happen next. As her eyes followed Spock, she caught Sulu's eye and nodded.

Slowly, she walked over to Spock and placed a hand on his shoulder. He barely acknowledged her presence and she could see his knuckles making small indents in the captain's chair. She saw the superficial layers of strength melt down bit by bit before her and felt his growing sadness and worry seep in as his defenses fell.

"Lieutenant Sulu," he said finally, "you have the con."

"Aye sir. And sir?"

"Yes, Lieutenant?"

"Keep us informed, sir."

Spock nodded and left the Bridge, Uhura following close behind him.

* * *

Before coming onto the _Enterprise_ , the term ICU did not have much meaning to Uhura. She knew its definition, certainly: it was where the most critically ill patients were, where their family members stayed with them day after day, praying for a miracle.

After she came aboard the Enterprise, however, it was a totally different story.

The first time she entered the ICU, she had gone to see a friend who was injured in the Nero incident. Upon stepping through the doors, she was greeted by the then newly instated CMO with a grunt and who then waved her to the bedside.

"She's gonna be fine," he had told her in a very pronounced Southern drawl as he left the room for the fourth operation, "injuries healin' up nicely."

He was right, of course.

With the CMO saving more and more patients once thought to be without hope, her attitude towards the ICU was that of cautious optimism- their CMO had pulled off as many medical miracles as Kirk had with the Enterprise, and although the ICU was still reserved for critically ill patients, the idea that their survival chances were greater than they had ever been in McCoy's hands always gave her something to clinch on to.

"Leonard will have you patched up in no time," she remembered telling an unconscious Sulu, who was battling an unfortunate case of poisoning from an unknown flower on Planet 113, now Xeron.

"Doctor McCoy will do something about the bleeding," she remembered telling an ensign as her friend lay in ICU after being taken down by a group of natives during a survey mission.

"Doctor McCoy will treat him to his best ability," she remembered telling an ambassador whose PA had been injured when the Enterprise was fired by the Tellerites en route to a secret conference.

However, just as she started associating the ICU with something that was probably not all that bad, the Khan affair screwed everything up.

Seeing Leonard breaking down in the ICU beside the unconscious Kirk, she finally tasted the fear of ICUs many had tasted before her.

Of course, McCoy somehow managed to pull off another miracle after that, but from then on, Uhura started detesting the ICU for what it could potentially mean.

 _And_ _here_ _we_ _are_ , she thought to herself, _waiting_ _for one James T. Kirk to determine his fate_.

Again.

"It's not as bad as it looks," she heard M'Benga's voice from the door, "burns usually looks worse than they are fatal nowadays. We've sorted out most of his injuries. Just waiting for him to wake up to see if there's any damage to the brain, but we're putting it at a 70% chance that he's alright."

"Where's Leonard?"

"He's sleeping. It's been many hours since he last slept, and he's apparently having a headache bad enough for him to admit it and get painkillers."

M'Benga paused and inclined his head to Spock, who had not spoken a word since they left the Bridge. Uhura looked at Spock's sitting form and sighed.

"He'll be alright," Uhura replied softly.

 _Once Jim is fine too._

-To be continued-

Reviews and comments are welcomed!


	5. Chapter 5

**Domino Effect**

A/N: Thanks for the reviews and for adding this story to your Favourites list! This chapter has spoilers for TOS episodes "Balance of Terror" and "The Enterprise Incident", so some knowledge in that will be beneficial, though not necessary.

Disclaimers: Not mine! Some scenes are from TOS episodes and are obviously not mine.

 **Chapter 5**

They really shouldn't be here.

After Kirk had finally regained consciousness and some semblance of the captain he was, Starfleet Command had immediately issued a secret order for them to patrol the Neutral Zone. McCoy had been in the middle of the yearly crew physicals ("Mr Spock, being half Vulcan does not negate the need to attend the compulsory physicals," to which Spock had replied, "Indeed not, Doctor. I only regret it has to be done at this time, when the Captain has a meeting with the Admiralty. As second-in-command, I should be the acting captain-" " I have full faith in Mr Sulu even when we're not just charting stars, Mr Spock, now if you can quit whining-!") when Kirk had barged into MedBay and announced the news to his bewildered First Officer and CMO.

"Jim, are you sure we're supposed to do this sort of thing? Aren't we merely explorers?"

"Indeed. While the _Enterprise_ is an advanced ship, I do not believe she is the best one to partake in this clearly military exercise."

"Well apparently we've had alarms from Starbases near the Romulan-Federation Neutral Zone, and we're the only ship around this area for now. Oh relax, Bones," Jim had slapped his best friend's shoulder lightly as he saw McCoy prepare himself for a full blown rant, "we are finally gonna do some ass-kicking! It's gonna be exciting!"

McCoy had then gifted the Captain with the best eye roll he could manage.

And so here they were, millions of light years away from home, trying to figure out what the hell happened to three of the Starbases that were definitely here just two months ago, as reported by another Federation starship. McCoy glanced wearily at the view in front of them, his fingers massaging his temple lightly.

"Headache?"

"No small thanks to you, Captain."

As Jim was about to reply, Uhura detected an incoming transmission from one of the remaining Starbases and called for the Captain.

"Priority One, Captain."

McCoy saw Kirk's shoulder tense up.

"Out...Outpost Four, do you read me, Enterprise, do you read..."

"Commander Hanson!" cried Kirk, as an aged and injured man came into view, "what happened?"

"Ah, Kirk!" called the commander weakly, "we were... hit by an unknown weapon... extremely strong, came out of nowhere, all defences useless..."

"What hit you? Alien lifeform? Romulan Bird-of-Prey? Exactly what?"

"I don't... oh no, it's appearing again...! _Enterprise_ , get out of here quickly!"

"Scotty, transport Commander Hanson now!"

"It's too late, Cap-"

And then he was gone.

Nothing but ashes.

The Bridge crew looked at each other.

"What. The. Hell."

* * *

"Sulu. Scan the space for any anomalies, especially evidence of vessels. Pull out every footage we have of the last few minutes. Spock, find any evidence of a similar occurrence. Uhura, compose a message to the Federation telling them what we have seen and put on hold. Shields up, red alert."

The three of them nodded and proceeded quickly.

"I'll be in MedBay, Jim."

Kirk nodded, his eyes never straying from the screen.

McCoy sighed silently to himself.

This day was about to get much worse.

* * *

Peace lasted for a grand total of three minutes before Sulu spotted something to the right of Enterprise's viewscreen.

"Magnify, Mr Sulu, zoom in quickly!"

"Aye Sir."

A shot rippled through the Enterprise.

"We've been hit. Shields at 70 percent."

"It's gone, sir," said Chekov, as he sought to detect the object on his screen.

"Sulu, saw what that is?"

"I think it's a Romulan Bird-of-Prey, Captain. The shape seems to be either a Klingon Battle cruiser or a Romulan Bird-of-Prey, but I don't think it's the Klingons- they have no business here."

"Yeah, I think it's a Romulan ship. Didn't know they invented a cloaking device..."

"Captain! To the right!"

"They're firing! Sulu, move us away!"

"They've locked on us sir, it's no use!"

"Deck Five hit. Shields at ten percent," came Spock's slightly worried voice, "if they hit us again..."

"There they are again! Saucer is hit, sir! Shields down!"

"Route all power to shields! Activate all containment procedures! Dr McCoy," called Kirk as he punched a call to MedBay, "how are we doing?"

"Not great Jim. Many wounded, especially with that last shot. Chapel, careful that... Shit! Sorry Jim, gotta go." With that, the connection to MedBay cut off.

"Incoming transmission, sir."

"On screen, Lieutenant."

As the screen flickered to life, Kirk found himself face to face with a female Romulan commander. As the crew saw the pointed ears of their foe, they inadvertently glanced at Spock.

"Attention U.S.S _Enterprise_. Surrender now, or prepare to be destroyed. We will give you five minutes to decide."

The screen turned black.

"Are we surrendering, Captain?" asked the new ensign at one of the technical stations.

"I would rather die than surrender," cut in Sulu resolutely, although Kirk did not miss his hand tightening over the picture of Ben and his daughter.

Kirk looked into the eyes of all his crew, ready to die for him.

He couldn't let them down.

Sulu could see the cogs in Kirk's brain turning rapidly as he started pacing the Bridge. A few seconds later, Kirk stopped, his eyes twinkling amusedly.

"Let's up this game."

Sulu felt a smile creep up his features.

"Uhura, I'm gonna need your boyfriend and your permission for this."

"What?"

"Ready room, if you please."

* * *

The discussion was quick- a few seconds at most. Kirk had returned to the Bridge, his step as confident and cocky as ever. Spock's face betrayed no emotions, and so when Uhura entered the Bridge, all eyes were on her worriedly. However, as they saw the slight smirk on her face, the atmosphere on the Bridge lightened considerably.

"Hail the Romulan Bird-of-Prey."

"Well, Captain?" came the Romulan commander's voice.

"We will not surrender."

"Oh? Then you would like to see your crew decimated?"

"I believe you want the ship, Commander; if you had been serious in your threat, we will not be here having this conversation."

"That is true, Kirk."

"As such, Mr Spock and I have had a short discussion. We want to talk terms with you. I propose myself and Mr Spock here beam over, and in an equal exchange, you beam two of your officers into the brig. We will not do anything to them."

"Mr Spock? Is he a Vulcan?"

"Is there a problem?"

"None. We were merely unaware of Vulcans serving on the Enterprise, especially as there are so few of them left."

"Why this interest, Commander?"

"Vulcans and Romulans share similar roots- we have the same forefathers," she paused, eying Spock slowly, "but I digress. Well, Captain Kirk, such courage is rarely seen amongst the Federation. Very well, the exchange shall take place. We will contact you shortly."

* * *

After McCoy had finished the emergency operations, he trudged tiredly back into his office while M'Benga and another field surgeon they picked up on their way here started on more operations. It had been a long day- the whole medical team had been involved in evacuating Deck 5 and transporting all the wounded into MedBay for treatment. In addition, he last slept 24 hours ago as an emergency had taken place overnight, and his headache was seriously killing him now. With a sigh, he pressed the button for the Bridge.

"MedBay to Bridge."

"Sulu here."

 _Sulu?_

"Sulu, where the hell is the Captain?"

"Captain Kirk and Mr Spock have beamed aboard the Romulan vessel, Dr McCoy."

"What? Are they out of their minds? You beamed only the pair of walking disasters over?"

"Doctor, I believe they have a plan."

"...and you know all about what they consider as plans, Sulu. I don't have space for them here, for goodness sake-"

"Er doctor? There's a transmission coming in. I will have to cut off this transmission."

"Yeah yeah go ahead," said McCoy wearily as he settled into his chair. Once the comm closed, McCoy turned to his computer and started updating medical files. As he typed what was perhaps the hundredth "critical", he sighed and turned to stare at the ceiling.

 _I never wanted to be part of any military action, much less in space..._

A "ping" on his computer caught his attention and brought him back to reality. Desperate for some distraction, McCoy clicked on the newly delivered file displaying the results of the annual crew physicals. One person in particular was highlighted in red, and a couple more others, including James T Kirk, were highlighted in yellow.

 _Red... always signified a crew member suffering from some life threatening and possibly incurable disease._

McCoy sighed and buried his face in his hands.

-To be continued-


	6. Chapter 6

**Domino Effect**

A/N: Major character death.

Disclaimer: Not mine.

 **Chapter 6**

"Bones! What did you call me for?"

McCoy always knew it would be difficult telling Jim he was leaving and he had rehearsed what he was going to say thousands of time, but now that Jim was here, he couldn't bring himself to say it.

"Well?"

McCoy looked at Kirk's questioning eyes and then at his screen.

He took a deep breath.

"I'm resigning."

"Wait, what."

McCoy took a letter from his drawer and placed it in front of his Captain, _the old fashioned way of tendering a resignation letter,_ thought Jim.

"Captain, I am resigning as the Chief Medical Officer of the U.S.S. Enterprise."

Jim stopped smiling.

"This isn't funny, Bones."

"I'm not kidding, Jim," McCoy said tiredly, closing his eyes and leaning against his chair, "I'm resigning."

"Denied," answered Kirk immediately. "I'm calling Spock to knock some sense into you. Spock," called Kirk, hitting the communicator button with stronger force than necessary, "CMO Office."

"Captain, it is now the middle of alpha shift. I-"

"Now."

McCoy could literally hear the cogs of logic turning on the other end, and the complete silence even from the bridge crew meant that they could detect the annoyance in Kirk's voice too.

"Acknowledged. I will be there in five minutes."

Kirk closed the communication and started pacing.

"Jim," McCoy tried, in his placating physician voice, "I-"

Jim silenced him with a look.

"We'll wait for Spock."

It didn't take long, though, for Spock to appear in the CMO's office. Not long enough for McCoy to compose himself and stand against the Vulcan.

"Captain?"

 _To stand against both of them_

"Spock. Doctor McCoy here is resigning. Do you have anything to say?"

Spock turned to look at McCoy, an eyebrow raised.

"Doctor?"

Faced with Spock and Jim's questioning gaze, McCoy met their eyes directly and clenched his fist.

"I'm resigning."

"Doctor, that is illogical."

 _Damn, he'll miss both of them._

"Not all things are logical, Spock. The latest escapade with the Romulans and stealing their cloaking technology convinced me that this isn't something I want to do. First Khan, now this. Risking life for military action? No, not anymore. I have tended my resignation to Starfleet Command and Starfleet Medical. I'll be leaving in a month."

"You can't go," whispered Kirk, broken, "we need you."

"Sorry, Jim. I've had enough."

McCoy couldn't bring himself to meet Jim's eyes when he said that.

* * *

McCoy's departure was quick.

A brief email from Starfleet Command had been sent to Kirk a week after McCoy sent in his resignation- he would be leaving in a month on a shuttle, and the replacement doctor, Doctor Schnabel, would be arriving in two weeks to get himself acquainted with the _Enterprise_. Kirk normally would have been the first one to suggest a farewell party, but this time, he said nothing.

Not when it's _McCoy_.

With McCoy's departure, M'Benga was now the new CMO, and Schnabel would be the new deputy.

"I would rather you stay, Leonard," M'Benga said to McCoy, "I don't give a damn about this promotion. And we all want you around, regardless of your-"

McCoy smiled and rested a hand on M'Benga's shoulder, cutting him off gently. "Do well, Jabilo. I'll see you again in Starfleet Medical some time, eh?"

McCoy went straight to the shuttlebay afterwards with what little possession he had without saying anything else, as if this was just a perfectly normal day and he was merely going on shore leave. When he entered the shuttlebay, however, he was met with the people he had been trying to avoid from the time he tended his resignation.

A tense silence descended between them.

"Doctor," greeted Sulu first, extending his hand, "I wish you all the best."

McCoy shook his hand professionally, not daring to meet anyone's eyes for fear that the tears that had gathered in his eyes would spill out.

"All the best to you too, Sulu," McCoy gathered his strength and looked straight at him.

Sulu tried to smile bravely in return, but failed.

Nyota was next.

She didn't care one bit about professionalism, or the fact that McCoy was a rank higher than her- she went up and hugged Leonard fiercely, and it wasn't long before he, like Uhura, felt tears running down his face. Their little hug was soon joined by Chekov, Scotty and even Sulu.

 _Damn it all._

"We'll visit Georgia some day. I'll bring Demora along, and she and Joanna can be best friends," said Sulu quietly.

"Yeah, we'll go back to Earth frequently to see you," said Uhura quickly, wiping her tears away.

"Aye, and the mint julep you promised me, Doctor!" Scotty said, trying to liven up the atmosphere, but even Scotty winced at the false cheer in his voice.

"Doctor McCoy, the shuttle is departing soon."

McCoy waved the conductor away, composed himself and went to Kirk and Spock.

"Captain, Commander," he greeted.

Kirk flinched slightly at the use of their official titles.

"Bones," pleaded Kirk.

"Captain, thank you for accepting me as your CMO for this time."

"Bones, please, stay. We've been friends for so long and the whole crew needs you. Tell me what's wrong and I'll change. I-"

"Jim," McCoy sighed, "This isn't about you. I've had enough of this exploration mission. You know I hated space; this stint at Starfleet was never gonna last long-"

"But we CAN. We've done so much in the past few years and what, you're gonna just leave now?"

"Yes."

"You can't-"

"Jim, I can, and I have. Take good care of yourself and the hobgoblin. I'm going. Goodbye, Captain."

Kirk knew that resolve in McCoy's eyes. It was what had brought Kirk back to life when all scientific evidence said it wasn't possible.

He knew he'd lost.

"Doctor McCoy," Kirk acknowledged softly, "I wish you all the best."

"Live long and prosper, Doctor," greeted Spock, with his customary hand signal. Spock's face was unreadable.

"Bye Spock," came the soft reply, as the shuttle doors closed, "and good luck."

* * *

 _A few weeks later..._

"Captain, I'm beginning to suspect something is not quite right," said Spock one day, during their weekly chess rounds.

"What do you mean, Spock?"

"I contacted Starfleet Medical awhile ago asking for updates on Dr McCoy, but they said that he has resigned from Starfleet and are not sure where he is right now."

"That's quite common, Spock," said Jim, struggling to keep down the wave of emotions he was suddenly feeling, "they don't keep track of people once they resign from Starfleet."

"That is true. However, when I looked up the list of deployed physicians in United Earth Federation, Dr. McCoy was no longer on the list."

That had Kirk's attention.

"What? Are you sure?"

"Positive. I have also called Joanna, who is unaware of where her father is, except that the last transmission to her was a few weeks ago, telling her that he would be in deep space for a few weeks."

"But he resigned then!"

"Indeed, Captain. I have also asked the entire Medical team, but no one seems to know where Dr McCoy is."

The hand holding the pawn paused midair.

"Check all bases, Spock. Something is wrong. See what the latest information we have of him is."

"Yes Captain."

That night, Jim hacked into Starfleet's records and sieved through every bit of information McCoy had sent to his superiors.

* * *

"Captain?"

"Yes, Nurse Chapel?"

"Nurse Evans informed me that you hacked into Starfleet yesterday to check for records on Dr. McCoy?"

 _Damn, he'd forgotten that Evans used to be a programmer before she switched fields._

"Well..."

"I think … I have some information you should know."

Jim startled.

 _McCoy_.

"Doctor McCoy is in Starbase 8, Captain."

"When were you going to tell me this?" asked Jim, his voice serious and hushed.

"I'm sorry, Captain. Doctor McCoy made all of us swear not to tell you, but I have recently had a report from Starbase 8 and… he's not well, Captain."

"Doesn't matter, we can treat it. So when is he coming aboard?"

"Captain... you remember the last crew physicals when Doctor McCoy saw a crew member's name highlighted in red?"

"Yeah. Ensign Tela, he told me. He worked on the cure for a month afterwards. Hasn't she been cured?"

Chapel fiddled with the pen on her desk.

"It wasn't her, Captain..."

Cold dread seeped through Kirk's veins. Pieces of puzzle started fitting themselves together: McCoy's incessant headache, him leaving the Enterprise, all records of him in Starfleet suddenly disappearing...

"Don't tell me..."

Chapel pulled up a file on her computer screen and turned it to Kirk.

 _Leonard H. McCoy_

 _CMO, Starship Enterprise._

 _Current condition: unknown, but critical. Viral lifeforms detected. Inflammation and autoimmunity markers highly upregulated in blood test. Results from science lab 3 suggests T cells and antibodies attacking lungs, central nervous system and..._

Kirk stopped reading.

"Is it infectious?"

"It doesn't spread by air, contact or food and water. It seems like the only way it can transmit is via this, and only under the conditions of the planet we had escaped from six months earlier."

Six months earlier?

Kirk's gaze turned to look at what Chapel was holding.

A vial of brown oil, scraped from the arrow that had wounded McCoy.

 _No..._

"We can do it. We have the best medical team, best research team, we can pull off—"

"No, Captain. By the time Leonard left the Enterprise, the Medical and Medical Sciences Research teams have tried everything we could, and the virus had mutated and triggered an autoimmune reaction. He's not just dying from the virus, Captain, he's dying from his cells attacking himself. We cannot do anything-we've tried treating the virus but nothing seemed to work, not even those humanised antibodies we generated. We've tried treating the autoimmunity, but the cells became resistant to all known treatments within four days. The illness is progressing too fast."

"We can try."

"Starbase 8, Captain, under the name of Eric Deskar. But remember, this is not the Kobayashi Maru."

 _There is no cheat code._

* * *

When Kirk and Spock entered the Medical facilities in Starbase 8, Kirk was struck by how much the layout resembled that of the Enterprise. The wards were similar, the beds were similar- even the doctors wore Starfleet uniforms instead of the traditional medical garb. One of the younger doctors who was bringing them around explained that many officers here for medical treatment actually preferred the uniforms over the traditional garb, and in a bid to keep their patients happy, they eventually decided to wear uniforms.

"Eric Deskar?" the young doctor had replied when Spock gave McCoy's alias, "he's being treated by our best doctor, Dr Boyce. Heard Dr Boyce used to be Dr McCoy's supervisor. You would know Dr. McCoy, right?"

"Yeah, we did."

"Awesome! You'll have to introduce me to him someday. I'm a big fan of his papers, but I've never gotten a chance to meet him. Mr Deskar has some resemblance though, and he said to me the other time many people have mistaken him for Dr. McCoy in his early years."

"How's ... Eric?"

"His condition has stabilised; a few days ago we thought we were going to lose him, but Dr Boyce did something and he's now better. He's a bit grouchy these few days, so be careful. But he always allow us young doctors to examine him. Said his dad was a doctor as well so he's happy to help train younger ones. Anyway, here we are. Mr Deskar, someone's here to see you! If you need any help press the call button."

As the doctor closed the door, the room quieted, a sharp contrast to the bubbly youngster who had brought them around earlier.

Kirk took a step forward.

That figure in bed.

No snarky comments, no hand waving, no sneaky hypos.

That couldn't be Bones. It just couldn't be him. Bones doesn't sit still for a minute, Bones doesn't shut up when something is wrong, and Bones certainly doesn't sleep in the middle of the bloody day.

But it was. Lying on a white bed, his face as pale as the sheets beneath him and his arms hooked up to multiple monitors and god-knows-what devices, was Leonard H. McCoy, Jim's best friend.

"Bones?"

"Hmph," the figure on the bed opened his eyes lazily and a couple of coughs interrupted his laboured breathing, "can't be… must be dreamin'…"

And then he saw them. Both of them, Jim and Spock, in flesh and bone.

"I see Chapel… Chapel told you."

Of course she did you idiot, Jim wanted to shout so badly, we tried to find you for ages and ages and ages but all our search turned up negative because you hid your name and we just couldn't trace you with the entire Starfleet Medical behind you…

But Jim held back and just nodded as he walked towards the biobed, Spock following him closely behind.

McCoy attempted to sit up, but that only triggered his cough even more. He took off his oxygn mask, quickly grabbing a towel nearby to cover his mouth. The sound of the hacking cough went on and on, showing no signs of stopping apart from the occasional gasp of air. Unknown to McCoy, Kirk could see the smattering of blood on the towel even as McCoy tried to hide it from their point of view.

"Easy, Bones, easy…"

"Why… why are you here? I … I thought I… "

"Abandoned us and wanted us to leave? Bones, we've been best friends for so many years. What makes you think we will abandon you at such a time?"

"I didn't want both of you to see me at this stage. I rather… rather you remember me as I was…"

 _Yet friends was never about just the good times, but about going through thick and thin together._

"Bones, look at me. We will be here. With you."

 _For one last journey._

"It ain't gonna be pretty."

"I don't care."

Spock said nothing, but made no move to leave.

McCoy looked at them, shook his head and drifted off again, a tear rolling down his cheek.

* * *

For the next few days, both Kirk and Spock were by McCoy's side: Spock had somehow wriggled a private room and two extra beds for them. Everyday, the two of them would watch McCoy and take note of his condition and help him if he needed any. That his condition weakened by day was clear to all; but what broke Jim's heart was the incessant coughing and the trembling of hands whenever he was awake.

 _Steadiest hands on the ship._

That cursed illness, wrecking his organs bit by bit, tearing apart the Leonard McCoy they knew so well.

His best friend, merely a shadow of himself.

"… Perhaps you should not exert yourself too much, Doctor."

"'m a doctor myself… you should… get some rest too, Spock."

"I do not require as much rest as humans do."

"Yeah, then your eye bags are lyin' eh?"

"Doctor, facial features cannot speak."

That elicited a laugh from McCoy.

A sincere but hollow laugh, echoing in Jim's mind.

* * *

The length of consciousness grew shorter and shorter as the days went by. Kirk made the move to call Joanna once they knew McCoy's condition had deteoriated quickly. Occasionally, episodes of fits or coughs will bring the entire room into a panic, with Spock calling for medical officers (he didn't have to, for McCoy was being watched around the clock), and Joanna holding his father's hand and Kirk holding the other, trying to keep him around.

Kirk, Spock and McCoy. More than friends, they were brothers in arms.

 _But all things come to an end_

Jim remembered that day clearly.

Everything had started as usual, except that McCoy was awake for a slightly longer period of time. It was in the evening, when himself, Spock and Joanna had taken dinner, when McCoy woke up.

"Still here?"

"Yeah."

"Could we go out? I just wanna feel the ground for myself again. Been in the sickbay for too long."

"Daddy…" "Bones…"

"Captain, Ms McCoy," it was Spock who spoke instead, "it would perhaps be wise to accord to the doctor's wishes."

"Agreeing with me, Spock? Never thought I'd see the day."

"Indeed not, Doctor. I was merely stating a fact."

Slowly and carefully, both Spock and Kirk helped him up onto a hover chair brought in by Joanna. Kirk grabbed a small piece of blanket and laid it over McCoy as they set out for the rooftop garden.

"Beautiful…"

"We've visited so many of them on our missions."

"Certainly never thought that possible as an aviophobe."

"D'you regret signing up with Starfleet?"

"Nah. Definitely miss my baby girl, and maybe occasionally annoyed by an insolent captain and a green blooded hobgoblin."

Jim laughed, but his hand on McCoy's shoulder tightened.

It was time, and they all knew it.

"I'm sorry I was never around you, Jo."

"It's okay, daddy," her voice broke as her brave façade began to crumble, "I know you loved me. And I always will, no matter where you are."

"And Jim… You'll have to take care of 'im, Spock… both of you… can't be running into danger anymore…"

 _Because I can't be there to patch you both up._

And with that, a great wave of tiredness came over him and he let go, even as the three of them tried to hold him on.

-To be continued-

Reviews and comments are welcomed!


	7. Chapter 7

**Domino Effect**

A/N: Aaaand here's the final chapter! Many thanks to elecktrum, natira (from the Fabrini system? ;)), mtcbones, mi guard, KnightLawn, Vana Valie, Maeva83, Kaedn, and a guest for reviewing, as well as those who followed and added the story to their Favourites list!

Disclaimer: Don't own anything!

 **Chapter 7**

-Six months later-

"... By Starfleet Order two-eight-five, you are hereby directed to report to Admiral Kirk as the Captain of the newly reconstructed USS Excelsior, for her maiden voyage."

"Congratulations, Captain Sulu."

"Thank you, sir."

"And now," the now elderly Admiral Barnett wrapped up, "presenting our newest captains and admirals."

The cadets all stood up and applauded as the cameramen jostled to get the best picture of the newest jewels of Starfleet. As Sulu made a move to leave, Jim grabbed his wrist and whispered into his ear.

"Drinks for all, my room. 7pm. Tell the rest."

* * *

True to his word, the gang came together and met outside Kirk's door at 7pm. Sulu rang the doorbell, which was quickly answered by Jim.

"From youngest Captain to youngest Admiral, eh, Jim?" asked Sulu, passing over the bottle which Jim caught deftly.

"Of course, I'm James T Kirk. This is the booze?"

Putting on a pair of glasses, Jim turned the bottle in his hands and scrutinized it carefully.

"Nope, no idea. Scotty, is this one of your drinks? What IS this?"

"Green stuff, sir."

Kirk laughed and motioned them to the table, where seven chairs and a bottle of Saurian brandy were set.

"Well, I'll take the risk."

Sulu couldn't help but notice that as the six of them sat down, the chair to Kirk's left side had been left empty. Spock sat to Jim's right, followed by Nyota, then himself and Pavel and finally Scotty. He felt his heart pull as he saw Kirk set seven glasses on the table, including one for the empty seat next to him.

It's been like this since that particular day. All of them had taken McCoy's loss hard, but Kirk had taken it the hardest of all, which wasn't surprising. The day McCoy was gone, Kirk relieved himself of duty immediately and it was Spock, instead of Kirk, who had announced it to the crew as Jim couldn't bring himself to do it. It was Spock who made arrangements for the crew to pay their last respects, and it was also Spock who contacted Starfleet for a week's leave for the crew to mourn. Jim was nowhere to be seen, and Spock refused to divulge any details as to where he may have gone.

When Kirk eventually emerged, he looked as if he'd aged ten years within a week.

Everyone had tried to continue on as normal, but the entire alpha Bridge crew could see that the Kirk now was only a shell of what he once was. He still smiled at the jokes the crew made and carried on the mission with professionalism, but everyone could see that the energy he once had was now gone. He avoided the MedBay even more than before, to the point where M'Benga had to seek him out in his room and persuade him to go down even for a simple check up. In addition, there was always an empty space beside Kirk in the Mess Hall and during the officers meeting, left respectfully empty by the crew for their beloved doctor.

Doctor Schnabel, for all his brilliance in psychology, could not draw Kirk fully out from his grief.

It thus came to no surprise when, three months to the end of the second five-year mission, Kirk announced his promotion to Admiral and his intention to leave the _Enterprise_.

"Commander Decker will be taking over the Enterprise," he paused as a gasp could be heard across the Bridge. "However, for those who wish to continue to serve with the alpha bridge crew may consider serving under Captain Hikaru Sulu aboard the USS Excelsior."

"What?" Sulu had almost jumped out of his seat when he heard that.

"Yeah, congrats, Captain Sulu," Kirk had replied, winking at him.

And so here they were: the six of them, plus the one who should be here but couldn't be, in Kirk's room, celebrating his success. He saw Kirk glance quickly at the chair beside him, the sadness so raw that Sulu looked away for a moment. He watched Scotty fill their glasses, pouring a bit more alcohol for the chair belonging to the other senior officer who loved alcohol as much as he did. He heard Spock stop his own words about humanity as if suddenly realizing there was now no one to counter him.

It was always during such occasions that McCoy's presence was dearly missed.

"So where are you going afterwards, Spock? I heard you're not staying on?"

"Indeed not, Jim. I will be going to New Vulcan."

"New Vulcan? Don't tell me you're becoming an ambassador?"

"I have not yet decided."

"Is Nyota coming with you?"

Spock did not answer.

"I haven't decided," said Uhura as she took a sip of the alcohol, ignoring Spock's silence totally.

Kirk looked at the couple - _are they even a couple now?_ \- and turned his attention to Chekov.

"And you, Pavel?"

"Scotty and I are staying on the Excelsior, Keptin."

"Well, at least the Excelsior won't be flown apart any time soon with Pavel navigating and Scotty in the Engineering Deck," concluded Kirk, smirking.

* * *

After several rounds of drinks and reminiscing about the adventures they had, Hikaru was the only one left at the table with Kirk. Spock and Nyota had retired to their respective rooms, Chekov was dead drunk on the couch following a Saurian brandy-drinking competition with Scotty, and Scotty had slipped back to whisper to Enterprise's engines for one last time.

Sulu had drunk with Kirk alone before, but that was eons ago, during the Academy. They had all been young then, with dreams of discovering new worlds and excited about future prospects with Starfleet.

Now, facing Jim alone again, he suddenly wasn't really sure what to say.

"With all due respects, sir," said Sulu finally, pouring another round of drinks for both of them, "you don't belong in the Admiralty."

Silence.

"I can't go back out there, Hikaru," whispered Kirk, looking at the brilliant comets whizzing across the sky, "I see the stars and- there's no urge to explore them anymore. All I can see is Bones dying out there... dying of the very space disease he ranted about, and I couldn't do anything about it..."

"I don't think it's what the good doctor have wanted."

"No, it's not. Yet here we are, splitting apart after the end of this five year mission, although just a year and a half ago we were so sure about going on another mission."

"So you'll never go back again?"

Kirk took another swig from the bottle.

"We'll see, Hikaru."

And it was then that Sulu saw Kirk's gaze rest intently at a photograph on the mantle he didn't realize was there before. The photograph was an extremely well made copy, featuring seven people donning red uniforms. Their mannerisms looked familiar, with a Vulcan standing next to-

... _Oh_...

This was the alternate timeline, the timeline of Ambassador Spock. The timeline that could've been, and perhaps, would've been, if not for...

As he heard a quiet sob emanate from the best Captain he ever knew, he too felt a tear trickle down his face as he mourned for what could've been.

 _For the Enterprise family they could've had till the end of days_

 **-The End-**

So, yeah. That's the end.

A huge thank you to all those who've been following the story, and who've been following my writing. It's certainly not the best out there, and I've been really busy so there are probably slips here and there-which is why I would like to thank all of you for making the time to read it! I'll probably be offline for a while as LIFE starts to hit. I'll still be around, but I think I'll be more of a reader than an author. I just thought it'll be nice to wrap up what I've written with this story that also ends this arc; but fear not, I'm sure I'll write about the good doctor again :) Waiting to see if the new Star Trek movies will give me inspiration, and maybe I'll re-watch the TOS series!

See you all soon, and thanks for dropping by :)

LaurielS


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